An integrated approach in predictive nanotoxicology - a step towards making nanomaterials safe by design

Manufactured nanomaterials (NMs), because of their appealing physico-chemical properties, are increasingly used in industrial and commercial applications. Their increased production and use raised concerns regarding their potential human health effects. However, nanosafety assessment is lagging far behind compared to the types of NMs produced and used in applications. In addition, lack of mechanistic information of adverse outcomes caused by NMs and the use of animals for hazard assessment making it even slower. The proposed project aims to develop animal-free fast screening tool for NMs, which is not yet available. A novel integrated strategy [adverse outcome pathway (AOP) + computational modelling (QSAR)] will be used to develop a tool to determine/predict the lung fibrosis induced by multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs). The tool developed in this project will serve its purpose in NM risk assessment and in regulatory applications.

Keywords:Nanosafety, Adverse outcome pathways, QSAR, nanotoxicology, safe-by-design

Disciplines:Occupational toxicology, Environmental safety and health of nanotechnology, Environmental health and safety